Special Event: SIGGRAPH

Computer graphics industry leader PDI (Pacific Data Images) will participate in a variety of presentations at SIGGRAPH 99. They include the following:

- PDI Co-founder and Chairman Carl Rosendahl is featured in the newACM SIGGRAPH produced feature-length documentary, THE STORY OF COMPUTER GRAPHICS. The documentary "chronicles the history of the industry, its impact on society, and the excitement of future possibilities."

- Electronic Theatre: For the fourth consecutive year, PDI is proud to

Gnomon School of Visual Effects has announced the members of their newly established Advisory Board. The panel of respected and experienced industry professionals have agreed to commit their time and expertise to guiding the future development of Gnomon's curriculum and program direction.

The Board will include:

Clifford Cohen's AnimAction conducted a workshop in the Electronic Schoolhouse at SIGGRAPH this past Monday. Titled "Art Before Technology or Technology Before Art? That is the Question", instructors introduced attendees to the classical animation process, stressing the importance of the basics and illustrating how a solid foundation in the art of animation supports creation and teaching. Recently, AnimAction presented at Annecy '99 in association with UNICEF celebrating the completion of the animated features for Cartoons for Child's Rights.

AvatarME wants YOU! is the battle cry of London-based AvatarMe Ltd. at this year's Siggraph in Los Angeles. Unveiling its revolutionary AvatarBooth, the company plans to incubate hundreds of 3D avatars from willing public at the exhibition.

Crater Software, a Spanish-Canadian software development collaboration, announced plans to launch a series of "satellite" versions of CTP, the company's 2D animation software, at this years' Siggraph. The launch of four CTP Satellites - Paint, Scan, Render and the already-released Pencil-test - will coincide with the release of CTP Version 1.3, also being showcased at the show.

The Computer Arts Institute in San Francisco is unveiling it's revised 3d animation curiculum for this fall. Courses offered will include 3D Studio Max, Character Studio, Photoshop for Animators, Animation Design & Storyboarding, VRML And Real Time Animation, 3-D Special Effects, Character Animation Workshop, 3d Texture Workshop, and PhotoShop for Artists & Illustrators.

Complete contact information for CAI can be found in AWN's Animation School Database.

3Dlabs, Inc. announced that NEC Corporation has chosen the 3Dlabs Oxygen GVX1 graphics accelerator as the mid-range offering for the NEC Windows NT Express5800/53Wc workstation series. Featuring Pentium III 550Mhz processors, the NEC Express5800 workstation line includes a wide range of products from entry-level to high-end systems that deliver outstanding graphics performance needed by most the complex design and engineering 3D applications.

REALAX introduces new modules and features of its powerful 3D-realtime tool RXscene.

The widely recognized and extremely easy to use 3D-tool allows the quick andsimple creation of 3D-realtime simulation. Existing 3D construction data can beimported in RXscene, combined with computation data using the RXscript-API,and simulated in realtime. The virtual test environment is ideally suited forDigital Prototyping and Digital Mockup (DMU). Different camera positions

Cambridge Animation Systems will show Animo 3 at SIGGRAPH. This latest version of Animo implements a 3D backbone into the current Animo 2D system, allowing seamless integration of 2D and 3D animation. Animo 3 enables users to load animated model and scene files from 3D Studio MAX and Alias|Wavefront's Maya. Within Animo 3, 3D elements can be translated, rotated and scaled using familiar 3D tools as well as the existing 2D tools and filters; coloring effects can be controlled; and 3D models can be animated with the 2D components.

Leading the delivery of interoperable Storage Area Networks (SAN) to the marketplace, DataDirect Networks Inc. has introduced SANware, a series of certified SAN application suites that incorporate hardware, software, professional services and support to solve customers' unique storage management needs. The company's SANware Application Suites were developed as a turnkey solution to address end-user requirements of proven and tested SAN solutions that minimize system downtime and ensure smooth implementation.

What changes can we expect to come about in the relationship between humans and large data repositories? How will intelligent environments influence our access to information? Is there really a clear boundary between the artificial and the real? And finally, how will the latest innovations in Information Technology come together to help us turn information into knowledge that is useful and meaningful?

The Ottawa School of Art (OSA) has launched an innovative, structured program teaching basic animation skills. The Animation Certificate Program has grown from courses run over several years.

The Ottawa School of Art was founded in 1879 and incorporated in 1976 as a non-profit charitable organization. School focus is high caliber visual art training.